Some Classical and Near Eastern Motifs in the Art of Pazyryk Author(s): Guitty Azarpay Source: Artibus Asiae,

Vol. 22, No. 4 (1959), pp. 313-339 Published by: Artibus Asiae Publishers Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3249206 Accessed: 15/11/2010 09:17
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GUITTY AZARPAY

SOME CLASSICAL

AND NEAR EASTERN MOTIFS

IN THE ART OF PAZYRYK*

the Pazyrykkurgansare major aids in connecting the Pazyrykphase of the Altai culture with widely scatteredScythiantribes of the Eurasiansteppes and south Russia of the seventh to the fourth centuriesB. C. The relative chronology of the five large Pazyrykkurgans has now been determinedon the basis of tree-ring counts which establish a range of forty-eight years between the constructionof the earliestkurgansnumbers I and 2, and kurgannumber 5 which was the last to be built,. This is, however, a floating chronology as the chief authoritiesdate the Pazyrykkurgansanywherefrom the fifth to the third centuriesB. C.2On the basis of evidence to be presented in this study, it is possible to determine a fixed date for the earliest kurgans numbers I and z2,and therefore, numbers 3-5 respectively. This dating results from the comparison of Pazyrykmotifs with those originating in the Classicaland Near Easternworlds, the principalsources of artisticinspirationin Pazyryk,which, however, had contact also with other distant centers of culture, even with Chinas. Archaeological evidence confirms Herodotus' account of the trade between the Greek colonies of the northern shore of the Black Sea and Scythiantribes of Eurasiabefore the fifth century B. C.4; referencesin the voyage of Aristeas indicate contact with such tribes at even an earliertimes. Objects found at Garchinovo, Kelermes and Vettersfelde confirm the pene* I wish to express my gratitude for the guidance and encouragement given by Professor Otto Maenchen, University of California,Berkeley. I am also grateful to Professor Alexander Soper, Bryn Mawr College, for his interest and many helpful suggestions. The timber used in the five large Pazyryk kurgans was presumably brought from the same vicinity and underwent the same climatic vissicitudes. Counts taken of the tree rings in the five chambers show that kurgans numbers I and 2 are contemporary, and number 4 is seven years later. Number 5 is eleven years later than number 3, and forty-eight years later than numbers I and 2; I. M. Zamotorin, "Otnositel'naia khronologiia Pazyrykskikh kurganov", Sovetskaia I, Arkheologia 1959, pp. 21-30. 2 S. I. Rudenko, "The Mythological Eagle, the Gryphon, the Winged Lion, and the Wolf in the Art of Northern Nomads," Artibus Asiae XXI, 2, 1958, p. 104, still dates the Pazyryk burials from the fifth century B.C.; M. Griaznov L'Art ancien l'Atai, Mus6e de 1'Ermitage, Leningrad 1958, pp. 5, 15, prefers the fourth and third centuries B.C.; de S. V. Kiselev, DrevnaiaistoriiaiuhbnoiSibiri, Moskva 1951, p. 373, gives dates of the third century B. C. and later. 3 Chinese silk embroidery from the fifth Pazyryk kurgan, and a rug woven in the pile technique, probably from Achaemenid Persia: S. I. Rudenko, Kul'turanaseleniia Altaia v skifskoevremia,Moskva/Leningrad 1953, henceforth gornogo Kul'tura, figs. I29-I 32, 85, pls. CXV-CXVI respectively; K. Jettmar, "The Altai before the Turks," Bulletin of the Museumof Far Eastern Antiquities,Stockholm 23, 1951, henceforth BMFEA, p. 205. 4 Herodotus IV, 1, 23ff. 5 E. D. Phillips, "The Legend of Aristeas: Facts and Fancy in Early Greek Notions of East Russia, Siberia and Inner Asia," Artibus Asiae, 195, p. 16I ff.

s has long been recognized, the prevalence animalmotifsand theiruniquerendition of in

313

tration of Greek influence in Scythianart as early as the sixth century B. C.6 Greek elements could, moreover, have reached the Altai by the south-eastern route from Persia, through Kazakhstanand the Oxus region before the last quarterof the fourth century B. C. The Oxus treasuredemonstratesthe existenceof Classicalinfluencesin CentralAsia in the fifth and fourth centuriesB.C.7 Most Classicalelements in Pazyryk are floral patterns, variations of the lotus-palmette, a

and traditional themerecognized thoroughly exploitedby the Greekartists.Thepalmette-hook of utilizedin Greekartas earlyas the sixthcentury motif,one variation the Classical palmette, in B.C.8, appears a moreelaborate hooks with curledup ends formin the doubleback-to-back leaveson the fourthcenturyB.C. columnbasefrom the Didytoppedwith lotus or palmette to maionat Miletus9 (Fig. i). A southRussian parallel the latterexistson a gold forehead plate of a horsefrom the tomb of Tsymbalnearthe village of Gr. Belosierkaio which Rostovtsev B. of representations this typeof placesin the fourthto the thirdcenturies C."In Achaemenian a also or tendrils hooksbelowthe leavescurldownward, variation seenin Greek the palmette, art'2.Several wooden bridleornaments from the firstPazyryk (Fig. z) and a leather kurgan'3 numberz (Fig. 3) show the palmette-hook motifas usedin Greek applique pursefromkurgan turnedup at the base.The essential artwith tendrils partsof this motifmaybe seenin a more flaskfrom the secondPazyryk abstract versionon a leatherapplique (Fig.4). Greek kurgan14 below mustalwayshave beenof and othermotifsdiscussed in influence the Pazyryk palmette and an indirectsortwith manylocal modifications, reinterpretations, distortions. Comparisons are of Pazyryk motifswith Greekprototypes most often madeon generalgrounds,basedon in of features characteristic Greekartsbut absent theNearEast,andforeignto the local stylistic of tradition the Altai. whichgrowup fromthe baseof the flanked tendrils Thepalmette-tendril a palmette by motif, from Pazyrykwith cut out humanfaces in the design,is found on leatherhorse trappings headsareoftengiven centers a fringeof tasselsat the top (Fig. 5). In southRussia,Medusa and whichgrow fromthe massof hairandcoilingsnakeson top of the head.A Medusa palmettes in B. headof the fourthcentury C. fromElizavetinskaia the Kubanshowsthe baseandtendrils on headsrepeated a phialemesomphalos on of a partially destroyed palmette theheadis.Medusa
E. H. Minns, "The Art of the Northern Nomads," Proceedings theBritish Academy28, London 1942, pls. II, XIV, A; of M. Rostovtsev, Iraniansand Greeksin South Russia, Oxford 1922, pl. VI. All three examples are dated to the sixth Antiqua XII, 1938, century B. C. by K. Schefold, "Der skythische Tierstil in Siidrussland," Eurasia Septentrionalis pp. 8, 14. 7 0. M. Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, British Museum 1926, pl. II. of 8 H. Payne, Necrocorinthia, Oxford I931, figs. 6i, 107, Io9 B, III, 112 A-B. et 1896, Paris 1904, P. 144. 9 E. Pontremoli, B. Haussoulier, Didymes,Fouillesde Paris 1891, fig. N. Kondakov, J. Tolstoi, S. Reinach, Antiquitis de la895; mdridionale, Russie o10 243. Rostovtsev, Iraniansand Greeks,p. 107. xx 12 of Examples from the Oxus treasure show the type generally encountered in Achaemenid art, Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, pl. XIII, 47 and the border motif on pl. XXII. I3 Kul'tura,pl. XXXIV, 1. 14 This palmette is perhaps related to patterns on other personal articles from the same kurgan; Kul'tura,pls. XCIII, 3; XCIV, I. 's Schefold, op. cit. supra note 6, p. 20, dates this tomb on the basis of datable Greek parallels. The fantastic female figure on the horse's frontlet from the tomb of Tsymbal shows a somewhat different treatment of the palmette on and the head; see E. H. Minns, Scythians Greeks,Cambridge 1913, fig. 54.
6

314

Fig. I.

Column base from the Didymaion, Miletus, 4th c. B.C. Potremoli-Hausoullier, Didymes, p. 144

Fig.

2.

Wooden bridle part from Pazyryk i. Kul'tura, fig. io8

Fig. 3.

Leather applique, Pazyryk 2. Kul'tura, pl. XCII, I

Fig. 4.

Leather applique, Pazyryk 2. Griaznov, L'Art ancien de l'Altai, fig. 46

Fig. 5. Leather horse trapping, Pazyryk i. Kul'tura, pl. LXXX, 6

Fig. 6.

Gold phiale

second half of4th Kul c.B.C. Oba, mesomphalos, Scythians and 99 Greeks, fig. Minns,

de Fig. 8. Leather belt from Pazyryk 2. Griaznov, L'Art ancien /'A/tai, fig. 40

Fig. 7. Relief from the temple of Artemis, Sardis,4th c. B. C. or later. Butler, Sardis11, 1, ill. 89

....

Fig. i o.

Detail of leather appliqu6, Pazyryk 2 Kld'tura,fig. 64

Fig. 9. Sima from Korfu, 6th c. B.C. Greek. Payne, Necrocorinthia, fig. Io8, B

Fig. is.

Detail of gold quiver case, Chertomlyk, after 340 B.C. Minns, Scythians and Greeks, fig. zo6

Fig. i2.

Horn bridle ornament, Pazyryk 2. Griaznov, L'Art ancien de l'A/tai, fig. 64

Fig. 13.

Wooden bridle ornament, Pazyryk i. Ku/'tura, pl. XXXII,

2,

Fig. 15. Felt applique, Pazyryk 5. Kul'tura,pl. XC,

41

Rodenwalt

Die Knt

der Antike p

Dalton, The Treasure of the Oxs,

p.

i,

Fig. 14.

Relief from the Didymaion, Miletus, 4th c. B. C. derAntike, p. 194 Rodenwalt, Die Kxnst

Fig. 18. Hammered out copper plaque, Pazyryk 2. Kzrtura, fig. 75

Fig.

20.

Red-figure vase from Kerch, 4th c. B. C. Schefold, Vasen,fig. 6 Untersuchungen denKertscher Zu

Fig. 19.

Bronze cauldron handle, 6th c. B.C. type Greek griffin head. Jantzen, Griechische GreifenKessel,71, Olympia 805

Fig.

2 i.

Griffin head from the Kuban, early 4th c. B.C.

and Minns, Scyihians Greeks,p.

208

Fig.

22.

Wooden griffin head, Pazyryk pl. LXXXIII, 2

2.

Kul'Iura,

Fig. 23.

Felt appliqud saddle coverX,Pazyryk . Kul'tura,pl. CIX,

Fig. 24.

Felt appliqu saddle cover, Pazyryk i. Kul'tura, fig. 163

Fig. 25.

Leather applique saddle cover, Pazyryk I.Kul'tura, fig. 158 Fig. 26. Leather applique saddle cover, Pazyryk i.Kul'tura, fig. 161

Fig. 27.

Wooden psalion, Pazyryk i. Griaznov, l'Altai, fig. 16

L'Art

ancien de

Fig. 28.

Wooden bridle decoration, Pazyryk i. Kul'tura, pl. XLIV, 3

Fig. 29.

Gold plaque from the Oxus treasure, probably 5th c. B.C. Dalton, The Treasure of the Oxus, pl. XXII, 32

Fig. 30.

Achaemenian seals from Ur. Legrain, Ur Excavations X, pl. 41, 797-798

Fig. 32. Fig. 31. Horse trapping, Pazyryk i. Kul'tura, pl. CXII

Detail of relief from Persepolis. Schmidt, Persepo/is I, pl. 12o

Fig. 35. Fig. 33. Achaemenian silver rhyton, Hermitage Godard, Le Trdsorde Ziwiye, fig. 65

Lion griffins made of wood and horn, Pazyryk Kul'tura, pl. XXIX, 2

Fig. 36.

from the Oxus Dalton, Aigrette treasure. The Treasureof the Oxus, fig. 46, 23

Fig. 34. Achaemenian gold roundel. Kantor, "Achaemenian Jewelry," JNES i6, pl. VII

Fig. 37.

Leather saddle arch, Pazyryk j. Ku/'tura, pl. CV,

Fig. 38.

Detail of rug woven in the pile technique, Pazyryk 5. Griaznov, L'Art ancien de l'Altai, fig. 59

Fig. 39.

Felt appliqu&, Pazyryk 2. Griaznov, L'Art ancien de l'Altai, fig. 63

Fig. 40.

Woven fabric, Pazyryk 5. Kul'tura, pl. CXVII,

Fig. 41.

Felt applique wall hanging, Pazyryk 5. Restoration from V. Shilov, Soobscheniia gosudartsvennogo Ermitazha X, 1956, p. 41

Fig. 42.

Detail of pectoral from Ziwiye, possibly 7th c. B. C. de Godard, Le Tresor Ziwiye,fig. 20

from Kul Oba from the fourth century B. C. display a similar motif16 (Fig. 6). These are related

to the type representedon a Greek bronze plate of the fourth century B. C.17 which has for its certainpalmettecomplexes on sixth century B. C. Greek vases'8. On both Greek and prototype south Russian Medusa heads the palmette is used as an externaland ornamentalfactor on the headsi' (Fig. 7) whereas the Pazyrykartist has cut out a human head in the center of the palmette (Fig. 5). This process of reinterpretation goes furtheron anotherhorse trappingfrom the same saddlewhere the palmetteis replacedby a crown of curling antlerszo, motif more familiar a and meaningfulto the local artist.Neither the palmettenor the ClassicalMedusahead is indigenous to the Altai. Homed animals are common in Scythian art; the prevalence of antlers in Pazyryk has caused at least one scholar to see symbolic and mythical meanings in such representations21. A continuous motif found on a belt from the second Pazyrykkurgan (Fig. 8) consists of scroll alternatingspiralsin a continuousscroll, decoratedwith drop-likeplaquesat the juncturesof the spirals.A border patternon a circularmedallionfrom Kul Oba shows a motif almost identical to that on the Pazyrykbelt except that the drop-shapedornamentsare there replacedby heartshaped forms placed in precisely the same positions22.A similar pattern, without the dropshaped ornaments,is again used on the border pattern of a silver vase from the same tumulus in south Russiaz3 which Schefold placed in the second half of the fourth century B. C.24 A possible Greek prototype for these patternsis a sima from Corfu of the sixth centuryB. C. (Fig. 9). There, the junctures of the spirals are decorated with three lobed ornaments which may represent stylizedpalmettes. Severalsaddledecorationsfrom Pazyrykshow abstractmotifs which may have been derived from similarand more realisticprototypeszs. Similar to the continuous scroll pattern is an applique design from an article of clothing found in the second Pazyrykkurgan (Fig. io) showing a continuous interweaving of leaf-like shapes and animal elements. This motif is directly relatedto another appliqueon leather from the same kurganz6 which freely repeatsits floral details. A possible prototype for the applique design on Fig. io, may be a floral scroll representedwithout the ibex heads on a quiver case from Chertomlyk(Fig. i i) which is derived from similarscrolls in Greek art particularly the of fourth century B. C.27The single leather cut-out flower shape which Rudenko calls a "realistic lotus"28s, is, as he observes, similarto the border patternon a woman's stocking from the same
16 Schefold, op. cit., p. 20, assigns it to some time after 360 B. C.

W. H. Roscher, Ausfuhrliches Lexikon dergriechischen romischen und Mythologie, Leipzig 1886-i890, p. 1722. 18 Payne, Necrocorinthia, d. These examples if reversed show a somewhat more rigid pattern, which is, figs. 51, right, 55,
17

however, basically similar to the south Russian and Pazyryk motifs.

or later by H. C. Butler, Sardis,Publications the AmericanSociety the Excavationof SardisII, i, Leiden 1923, ill. 89. of for 20 Kul'tura,pl. LXXX, 7. 21 A. Salmony, Antler and Tongue, Artibus Asiae, Supplementum XIII, 1954, p. 20. 22 Kondakov-Tolstoi-Reinach, op. cit. supra note io, fig. 207. 23 Ibid., fig. 260. 24 Schefold, op. cit. supra note 6, p. 20. 25 Kul'tura,fig. Iio, B, E, and perhaps K. 26 Ibid., pl. XCIII, I. 27 S. and Perrot, C. Chipiez, A History of Art in Chaldea Assyria I, London 1884, fig. 270, sixth century B.C. example. Early Hellenistic example from Fratti di Sallerno, A. W. Van Buren, "News Letter from Rome," American Journal of 61, Archaeology 4, 1957, henceforth AJA, pl. 107, 8. F. Noak, Die BaukunstdesAltertums,pl. 55, a. 28 Kul'tura,p. 292, fig. 171.

19 Relief from the cella of the temple of Artemis at Sardis which has been tentatively dated to the fourth century B. C.

323

but Theseexamples, however,lack any definitelotus characteristics makean interkurgan29. floralpatterns fromthe samekurgan3o. with otherabstract estingcomparison to The closestanalogies the lotus-palmette-cross in low reliefon two horndiscsfrom carved on severalCorinthian vasesof the sixthcentury the secondPazyryk kurgan(Fig. I2)3a appear elementsof the Pazyrykdiscs are similarto a patternon a B.C.3zThe basic compositional B. fromAchaemenian of Corinthian of the firstquarter the sixthcentury C.33, but different plate on The double-palmette-cross and many-petalled Assyrianlotuses34. represented severalwood is a free interpretation a palmette-cross of carvingsfrom the first Pazyrykkurgan(Fig. 13) B. presenton Greekcoins of Mendefromthe secondhalf of the fifthcentury C.s and pattern from the fourthcentury on probably repeated a mosaicfloorof HouseA vi, 8, at Olynthos36, whilethe Pazyryk are B.C. (Fig. 14).The Greekexamples clearly articulated, figuresshowonly at withoutthe hook-likesepalsusuallyindicated the baseof the of the essentials the palmette leaves. motifsis the lotus inscribed its tendrils, in One of the best knownandmostwidelydistributed wall hangingfrom Pazyryk(Fig. 15). This motif on represented the borderof a felt applique B. worldandis usedagain as appears earlyas the seventhandsixthcenturies C. in the Classical cultures muchlaterin the art of Persiaandits neighbouring duringthe Sassanian period.An at Ephesusand datedto approximately the found at the templeof Artemis ivory fragment lotus with tendrilscurvingup from the baseand joining sixthcenturyB.C.37 shows a similar fleurto above the lotus in a heart-shaped pattern.This motif is referred as the "palmette who perhapsassociatedit with the numerouspalmetteforms by delysde" R. Mecquenem38 of ornaments the tendrilson Greekvasesand architectural in inscribed heart-shaped similarly in south tumulus B. fifthandfourthcenturies C.39 (Fig. I6). A gold bandfromthe Chertomlyk a between lotus showsa compromise B.C. by Schefold%', dated Russia40o, to the fourthcentury in motifinscribed its tendrils. anda palmette the motifsof Classical Non-floral Perhaps most signifioriginarefew in the artof Pazyryk. whichoccupiesa majorplacein the combatscenecompositions. cantof theseis the birdgriffin B. in This motifhasa long historyin the NearEastbeginning Ur of the thirdmillennium C.42, Perwho and perpetuated the Assyro-Babylonians*4 in turnpassedit to the Achaemenian by
29

30
31 32

Ibid., p. XCIV, 2. Ibid., pls. XCIII, i, XCVII, fig. 65.

Ibid., pl. C, 3.

figs. 53, 54 B-D, 57, 59. Payne, Necrocorinthia, I, CorpusVasorumAntiquorum pl. 6: 4. Berkeley UCMA 8/104. 34 fig. Payne, Necrocorinthia, 54 A. Notes and Monographs pp. 51-53, pl. IX, 82. 27, as S. P. Noe, TheMendeHoard, Numismatic 36 David M. Robinson, Excavationsat Olynthos V, the Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore 1933, permission granted to reproduce pl. 16, A, in this paper. 37 D. G. at Hogarth, Excavations Ephesus, the Archaic Artemisia,London 1908, pl. XLII, I5, 19. 38 Mimoiresde la MissionArche'ologique Iran, Press Universitaires de France 1947, XXX, p. 103. en 39 Toronto 193o, Toronto 6oo-C. 41o, pls. XCV, LXIV. Robinson, Harcum and Iliffe, Greek Vases at Toronto, andGreeks,fig. 44. 40 Minns, Scythians 41 Schefold, op. cit. supra note 6, p. 28. 42 L. X, Legrain, Ur Excavations,Seal Cylinders Publication of the Joint Expedition of the British Museum and the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania to Mesopotamia, London/Philadelphia 195 I, pl. 42, nos. 805-806. 43 W. Schwenzner, "Das geschiftliche Leben im alten Babylonien," Der alte Orient16-18, Leipzig 1916, nos. 337, 355.
33

324

sians. The latter representedthis motif in all media4*but showed little variationfrom a single prototype of the compactly built feline with a bird's head, wings, bird's claws on the hind Near Eastern quarters,little or no indication of a mane4s,and markedwith characteristically muscular stylizationS46 (Fig. I7). This type of griffin was not adopted in south Russia even when Persianinfluence was strongest47.N. N. Progrebova has pointed out the differencesbetween the south Russian griffins48.She has described an Assyrian type demonstratedby the example on the sword sheath from the Melgunov barrow49 dated to the sixth century B. C.so; a Greek type as representedon a silver mirrorof the same date from Kelermess'; and a purely Scythian type, a realisticbird of prey with a protuberanceon its head. The Greek type has a feline body with one or more circularprotuberanceson its head and is less realistic than the Scythiancreaturewith its tuft of hair. As in south Russia, three types of bird griffins are found in Pazyryk; the realistic bird of prey with a protuberanceon its heads5which is sometimes given an element of fantasy by the addition of antlerss3; Achaemeniantype (Fig. I8); and the Greek type based on prototypes the from the Black Sea region. Corinthianvase paintings of the seventh and sixth centuries B. C. show the griffin with either an avian or feline body, and a long neck and swan-likehead with one or more protuberances, horns and earss5.The same characteristics appearon Greek bronzes of this period as demonstratedby the excellent illustrations of Ulf Jantzenss (Fig. i9). The bronzes usually show the griffin with its mouth open. It is otherwise identicalin type to those representedon Greek vases of the same period. There is no indication of a mane other than a few curls and scales as seen also on contemporarysouth Russian exampless6. A red-figurevase from Vulci datedto the fifth centuryB. C.s7 shows an Arimaspian combatwith a griffinwhich, in with its long neck decoratedwith a spiral curl, is identical to the sixth century B. C. griffinss8. A new type of griffin appearsin Greek art of the fourth century B. C. It is to be seen on
Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, I, XXII; E. Herzfeld, Iran in the Ancient East, Oxford 1941, pls. LXV, LXXXIV, of top left, fig. 362. 45 In this case "mane" indicates only the hair along the back of the neck, and not the ruff or hair around the face. 46 On the different shapes and reasons for muscular stylizations, see Anne Roes, "Achaemenid Influences upon Egyptian and Nomad Art," Artibus Asiae 15, 1952, pp. 18-I9; and A. Salmony, "SarmatianGold Collected by Peter the Great. The Early Sarmatian Group with Embossed Relief," GazettedesBeaux Arts, 1949, P. 6. 47 Rostovtsev, Iraniansand Greeks,p. 0o.Although the Achaemenian lion griffin is found in south Russian art of the fifth century B.C., ibid., pl. XVI, I, the Persian type of bird griffin is rare there. 48 N.N. Pogrebova, on griffins in the art of the northern Black Sea area in the archaic period, Kratkiesoobscheniadoklao dakh i polevich institutaistorii material'noi kul'tury22, 1948, p. 67. issledovaniiakh 49 Ibid., fig. 14. so Schefold, op. cit., pp. 8, 14. s' Ibid., pp. 8, I4. 52 Kul'tura,pl. LXXXV, 3, 4. sa Ibid., pl. LXXXIV, I. 54 Payne, Necrocorinthia, 35: 4; 36: I, 8, Io. pls. ss Ulf Jantzen, Griechische Institut, Berlin 1955. archdologisches GreifenKessel,Deutsches s6 Rostovtsev, Iraniansand Greeks,pl. IV shows a silver mirror from Kelermes in the Kuban, dated to the sixth century B. C., pl. X, B, a bronze pole top from the Kuban, in the Hermitage, dated to the sixth to fifth centuries B.C. Minns, "The Art of the Northern Nomads," op. cit. supra note 6, p. 67, gives the same dating. M. Rostovtsev, The Animal Style in SouthRussia, Princeton I92o, pl. IX, I. 57 M. Valotaire, "Vases Peints du Cabinet Turpin Criss6," RevueArchiologique 1923, p. 51. 17, For complete figures of bronze griffins, see G. Rodenwalt, Die Kunst der Antike, Berlin 1927, p. 163; des ss8 Jabrbuch deutschen Instituts 52, 1937, pls. 34-35. archdologischen
44

325

Attic vases made for export to and elsewhere6o. these examplesthe griffin In Kerchs9(Fig. 20) is depicted as a powerfully built winged feline with ears, a bird's head and a long mane resembling fish fins. This monster has little in common with the sixth century B. C. type (Fig. 19). The stylized knob on the head is gone, and the wings and powerfully built body are closer to the Near Eastern types than those of Greece of the sixth century B. C. This change did not occur suddenlybut happenedafter almost a centuryof development. The reasonfor the change is documented by Greek coins of the fifth century B. C. The advance of Persian arms to the Aegean brought about the cessation of coinage at Miletus, Ephesus and Phocaea and the substitution of Sardiancoinage after approximately544 B. C. Persian oppression drove large numbers of Teian and Phocean citizens to Thrace, Italy and Gaul. The emigrees took with them their moneyer'sskills. Thereafter,coins of Graeco-Asiaticstampappearedon the coasts of Thrace, Italy and Gaul. The Teian seated griffin emerged at Abdera in Thrace, a source of abundantand imaginativecoinage6I. The archetypeof the fourth centuryB. C. Greek griffin appearson Teian coins of the sixth centuryB. C.62 After the Teian immigrationin the first half of the fifth centuryB. C.63, Abderan coins show the Teian type of griffinwith a short, slightly dentatedmane64. Coins producedafter the middle of the fifth centuryB. C. show a transitionfrom the saw tooth to the fish-fin type feature of Assyrian griffins and felines66, is mane65.The earlierdentatedmane, a characteristic not seen on griffins from AchaemenidPersia67. This feature, however, probably continued to exist in Graeco-Asiaticareas such as Teos. A comparison between the griffin on the sixth century B.C. Teian coins and the Assyrian examples shows close parallelsin the treatmentof the mane, body and head68. These features were further developed by Greek artists who finally created the fourth century type seen on Kerch vases (Fig. 20o)and in the recently diswhich is the dominant type in the fourth century. covered mosaic from Pella in Macedonia69 of One of the earliestrepresentations such a griffin in south Russiais the relief on the body of the stag from Kul Oba70which Schefold places in the middle of the fifth century B. C.7, The naturalismof the small animals representedin relief on the body of the stag is indicative of Greek influence if not workmanship. The griffin on this piece shows a short mane with
59

aus K. Schefold, Untersuchungen denKertscher Mitteilungen russischen Vasen,Archdologische Berlin/Leipzig, Sammlungen, Zu

et de Rome 172, pls. XXIV, oenochoe from the British Museum, XLII, pelike from the British Museum, XLII, pelike from Cabinet des Medailles. 61 Charles Seltman, GreekCoins,London 1933, p. 64. 62 Ibid., pl. VI, lo, 12. The griffins have short saw-tooth edged manes, not yet the developed fish-fin. 63 Ibid., p. 142 64 Ibid., pl. XXVIII, 8. 6s Ibid., pl. XXVIII, 7, 10-13. 66 Schwenzner, op. cit. supra note 43, pp. 61: 293; 64: 311; 65: 319-320; 67: 334; 68: 337-339; particularlythe figure 67 The only example that approachesthis manner of representing the mane is seen on a lion, ibid., p. 102oz: and even 510, this example is more similar to a herring bone pattern. 68 See supra notes 62,66. 69 E.Vanderpool, "News Letter from Greece," AJA 62, 3, 1958, p. 86, 4. 70 Kondakov-Tolstoi-Reinach, op. cit. supra note io, fig. 268. Or T. Talbot-Rice, The Scythians, New York 1957, pl. 24, p. 159, where two differentdates are given for the same piece. 71 Schefold, op. cit. supra note 6, p. 21.
on p. 71: 355.

pls. 25: 569, 461; 40: 227; 125: 516, 492. des 60 H. Metzger, "Le Representation dans la Ceramique Attique de IVe Siecle," Bibliothdque Ecoles Franfaisesd'Athbne

326

crescent-shapededges similar to the fourth century type, but not as developed as the fish-finshapedmane seen on the fourth centurygriffinhead from the thirdbarrowof the Seven Brothers group in the Kuban7z(Fig. 21). Among south Russian finds of the fourth century B.C. and later, this type is universal73. One group of Pazyryk bird griffins with parallelsin south Russia belongs to this fourth century B. C. type. A wooden griffin head from the second Pazyrykkurgan (Fig. 22) is almost a duplicate of the head from the Kuban (Fig. 21). Another griffin head from Pazyryk, made of colored felt and tassels, repeats the same features74 which are also present in griffins rein combat (Figs. 23-24). The Pazyrykcombat scenes include two classesof composipresented tions. The first is distinguished by a naturalisticand lively battle between a carnivore and a herbivore, depicted realisticallyand decoratively (Fig. 25). In this group the attacking animal is usually the panther,an animalindigenous to the Altai and no doubt familiarto the Pazyryk artist. These scenes, derived from actualvisual experience,are to be contrastedwith the second class of compositions where the attack is unconvincing and the postures unnatural.The aggressor is immobilized at the moment of the attack, while its victim's hind quarterstwist in anticipationof the impact7s.In such scenes the attacking animals are usually fantastic beasts, foreign to the Pazyryk artist in both nature and tradition. The result is a stereotyped design, lacking in spontaneityand life; decorative, but without the movement and vitality of the first group. In one composition the griffin is representedon one side of a saddle cover and its prey on the other, yet the victim's hind quartersare twisted as if under the impact of the attack (Fig. 23) (see below page 333). All bird griffins shown in combat in the Pazyrykkurganshave the fish-fin-shapedmanes and belong to the conventional class of combat scenes (Figs. 23-24)76. Their closest parallelsare the fourth century B. C. south Russian (Fig. 21) and Greek examples (Fig. 20). The fact that these animalsbear Near Easternmuscularstylizationsis to be expected. Such motifs are incorporatedinto most of the representationsof animals in Pazyryk, whether of Scythian,Near Eastern,or other origin. This is well illustratedby a griffin which combines the classicaltype crescent-edgedmane with the realistic body of the Scythianbird of prey77 (Fig. 26). This hybridizationis further elaboratedon a horse's psalion (Fig. 27) which shows Achaemenid muscularstylization around the beak, the classicalmane, and a tuft of hair on the head resemblingthat of the Scythianbird of prey.It is of great importancefor chronological reasons that Classicalelementsin all the Pazyrykkurganspoint to south Russiaand Greece of the fourth century B. C. In an article written in 1957, Rudenko convincingly answeredsome of the questions raised concerning his dating of the Pazyryk burials mainly in the fifth century B.C.78. However, the particularproblem of the griffin, which had been noted by and menKiselev70
72

Ibid., p. 18, the third barrow of the Seven Brothers group in the Kuban. Minns, Scythians Greeks,p. 208, 1887. I. and i. No. III, states that this barrow is older than the others in this group.
Minns, Scythians and Greeks, pp. 159, 198-199. Kul'tura, fig. 136.

73 74

75 Ibid., pls. CXI, CIX, fig. 163. 76 Ibid.,pls. XXIII, 3, CIX, CXI, figs. 161, 163. 77 Ibid., XXIII, fig.I6I. pl. 3, 78 S. I. Rudenko, "K Sovetskaia Arkheologia 27, 1957, p. 30 iff. Here Rudenko gives the voprosu...," major arguments
79

presented by Russian critics of his chronology. S.V.Kiselev, Drevnaiaistoriiaiuthnoi Sibiri, Moskva 1951, pp. 368-371.

327

tioned in passing by Anne Roes80, was not again raisedby Rudenkos8. Rudenko'scomment on this subject made in his earlier writing is not as convincing as his other arguments82. In his earlierbook he consideredAssyriaas the source of the prototype for the Pazyrykgriffin, which he suggests reachedthe Altai through Urartu.The weakness of his argumentis that while many parallelsto the Pazyrykgriffin exist in south Russia and Greece, none have been discovered at Urartu, and Assyrian griffins do not show the developed fish-fin-shapedmane. The Pazyryk mane which evolved specificallyin the Classicalworld and was griffins show the fish-fin-shaped the establishedfeatureof Greek griffins of the fourth century B. C. The analogy between the wooden horse trappings in the form of human heads from the first Pazyrykkurgan (Fig. 28) and certainClassicalBes or gorgon heads has alreadybeen noted by Kiselev83. He suggested that the Mongoloid type represented on one of these heads is evidence of Hunnic penetrationinto Pazyryk,which would thus date the burialsto a laterperiod than the fifth and early fourth centuries B. C.84 This evidence alone would be insufficientto support that conclusion, even if the sole argumentagainstit were the fact that only one of the five heads is definitelyof Mongoloid type. These heads, together with the leathercut-out from the second Pazyrykkurganwhich shows a beardedhead with an extendedmouth8s, are treated in the same schematizedmanneras the Bes heads from the Oxus treasure86 (Fig. 29) and lack the naturalismof the south Russian and Greek gorgon or Medusa heads87.The Oxus region ratherthan south Russia may here be responsiblefor the tranferenceof this motif to Pazyryk. The Oxus treasurebears witness to the strong influence excercisedby Persia in the Oxus region during the Achaemenid period. Bactria and the area north of the Oxus river were satrapiesof the Persian empire during the reign of Darius. It appearsthat the CentralAsiatic tribes, prior to the conquest by Alexander, establisheda trade route providing direct contact between the Oxus region and the north-east88. In the second half of the fourth century B.C., conflict between Alexanderand some of the CentralAsiatic tribes closed this route and put an end to the free transmissionof Near Easternproducts through the Oxus region to the north. The Pazyryk burials contain innumerableAchaemenianinfluences and some direct imports, the most obvious of which have been recognized by others and will, therefore, be only briefly mentioned here. The woolen rug woven in the pile techniquefrom kurgannumber 589 and the gold earring
Anne Roes, "Achaemenid Influences on Egyptian and Nomad Art," Artibus Asiae 15, 1952, p. 26. 81 In his recent article on "The Mythological Eagle, the Gryphon, the Winged Lion, and the Wolf in the Art of the
80

Northern Nomads," Artibus A.iae XXI, 2, 1958, p. 107, Rudenko recognizes the crenellated crest in the Kiev group of griffins as Greek influence from the fourth century B. C., but continues to date the Pazyryk kurgans from the fifth
century B.C., ibid., pp. 104, 107.
82

Kul'tura,pp. 346-348. 83 Kiselev, op. cit. supra note 79, PP. 373-374. 84 Ibid., p. 37385s Kul'tura, fig. 114. 86 Oriental InstitutePublicaII, of Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, nos. 7, 32; E. Schmidt, Persepolis The University Chicago of
87 88 89

tions 69, Chicago 1957, pls. 31: 4, 41: 7. der Reallexikon Vorgeschichte Berlin 1927, pl. 184, c, shows a bearded satyr head in front view with naturalistically IX,

represented hair and features, unlike the schematic heads from Pazyryk and Achaemenid art. Kiselev, op. cit., pp. 357-361. v The complete rug is reproduced in A. L. Mongait, Arkheologia SSSR, Moskva 1955, pl. facing p. 164.

328

decoratedwith inlays and granulationfrom the second kurgan9oare unique in Pazyryk. They demonstratethe complex techniquesof weaving and granulationknown within the Achaemenid empire and show motifs which were familiar to Persiag' with prototypes in Assyrian art92. Strong Achaemenianinfluence is present in several woven pieces of fabrice9 which even if local copies, are evidence of Achaemeniantextile patterns.One fragment shows a lion procession which repeatsin detail94 lion processionsfrom Persepolis,Susa and Achaemenidjewelry9s. A second fragmentshows two figures and their attendantsconfronting an incense burner96. All four figures wear serratedcrowns and long robes decorated with mural patterns and circles. Each of the two main figures in the center holds a lotus in one hand and raises the other hand through the folds of draperywhich hangs from the crown to the knees. Neither the clothing and crowns worn by these figures nor the incense burner has any parallelin actual Pazyryk finds. Their analogies are to be found in AchaemenidPersia where such incense burnerswere used for religious purposes, as seen on a relief from Persepolis'9. The lotus had religious significancefor the ancientPersiansand especiallyfor the followers of the cult of Anahitawhich was the popular religion of some of the Iranianpeople, such as the Saka.In the first half of the fourth century B. C., Artaxerxes officially promulgated the worship of Anahita throughout the empire.An Achaemeniancylinderseal, perhapsfrom this period98s,shows a figure in a long robe, probablyAnahita, seated on a throne while anotherfigure approachesofferinga dove. An incense burnersimilarto that on the Pazyrykfabric is placed before the seated figure. Furthermore, the approachingfigure wears a long robe and serratedcrown from which draperyhangs down her back, all of which parallel the central figures on the Pazyryk fabric. The Pazyryk figures with lotuses, perhaps queens, may well be invoking the goddess from the Persian seal whose symbol they hold. Other than these exampleswhich have direct parallelsin Achaemenidart, there exist works of probably local manufacture,which less directly show Near Eastern influences. In contrast to the Classical motifs, which consist largely of floral elements, most of the Near Eastern influencesin Pazyrykare the animalmotifs which had played an importantrole in the art of the ancient Near East from prehistorictimes. The traditionof animalrepresentation the ancientNear East finds its fullest expressionin in the ninth and eighth centuriesB. C. in Assyria,where animals,when not playing a symbolic role, are representedin their natural surroundings, in combat, or in decorative processions. The muscles of the animalsare indicated by grooves and lines or by colored inlays on small metal objects. The AchaemenianPersianswho adopted this tradition of animal representationboth technicallyand stylistically,narrowedits rangemainlyto the glorificationof the monarchs.Their art was exercisedin the service of the king; and to achievethis end, the Persianartistmost often
o90 Kul'tura,fig. 78. 9' M. Dieulafoy, L'Acropolede Suse, Paris 189o, pl. 8, shows lotuses similar to those on the earring from Pazyryk.

92 Ibid., fig. 163.

93 Kul'tura,pl. CXVII,

94 Ibid., pl. CXVII, 1. I-3. 95 H. J. Kantor, "Achaemenid Jewelry," Journalof Near Eastern Studies16, January 1957, pl. V, a, b. 96 Kul'tura,pl. CXVII, 3. 97 Herzfeld, Iran in the AncientEast, pl. LXVII. 98 Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, of fig. 9.

329

excluded naturalsurroundingsand landscape99, used repetition at the price of spontaneityand at the cost of naturalism,and employed heraldic and bisymmetricalcompositions. stylization We know little of the popular and nonmonumentalart of the Achaemenians,due perhapsto its perishablequality. Such an art probablyexisted, at least in areasdistantfrom the majorcities of the empire; as may be inferredfrom objects from the Oxus treasureo00 a few seals from and an Achaemeniandeposit at Urno (Fig. 30). The latter depict animalswhich are extremely lively and almost unaffectedby the weight of traditionand formalitywhich bearsso heavily on monumental art, such as the famous combat scene at Persepolis. The lions in most cases attackfrom above, and on several seals the ibex is shown with its hind legs outstretchedin line with its influencesin Pazyrykwould belong back (Fig. 30). Perhapsit is to be expectedthat Achaemenian to the popular rather than the monumental art of Persia since influences reaching Pazyryk originatedmainly in the northernprovinces some distancefrom the capitalsand largest cities. An applique saddle cover from the first Pazyrykkurgan (Fig. 25) shows a vigorous combat in scene which the artist seems mainlyinterestedin the decorativeeffect of his composition and exploits realisticanimalforms to create a patternwhich is both decorative and animated.The

from that of the Achaemenian is aim of the artistof this composition indeedvery different of a The the who carved lion attacking bull on the baseof the staircase the apadanaloz. sculptor Much in keepingwith the otherrelieffiguresat Persepolis. is of staticquality the latteranimals and arethe Achaemenian closerto the Pazyryk which show animation movedesigns sealsI03 mentnot suggested the largestonereliefs. by in on combatscenesoftenshowmarkings the bodiesof the animals the shapes The Pazyryk of the "bow and dot" or "appleand pear"motifs (Figs.23-24) which in the Near East reat of The presentstylizedmusculature. prototypes thesemotifshavebeendiscussed length by and Salmony Anne Roes104; the firstof whom claimsthat such motifswere derivedfrom the are of technique inlayin the Near East, and the second,that indicationsof such stylizations the of shown on earlyreliefsandsculptures the samearea.Whatever prototype be, it is the may combat that to NearEast.Thisis significant this studysinceit is apparent themostconventional of number bodymarkings showthe greatest and sceneswithforeignmonsters beastsin Pazyryk and on or in number absent the realistic animated examples (Figs.23-24), whiletheyarefewer art The idea of the combatsceneis itselfforeignto the earliest of the ScythiansI06 (Fig.25)10s. it who mostprobably acquired fromthe NearEastwhereit hadbeenusedfrom earlytimesI07. of The representation combatbetweena lion and an ibex on a pairof silverbelt buckles
'I Sometimes trees or reeds are rendered to clarify the story, H. Frankfort, Cylinder Seals, London 1939, pl. 35, d, f, k. of 1oo Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, pls. IX-X.
tor See also, Legrain, op. cit. supra note 42, pl. 41, nos. 795, 796, 799, 800.
102 103

Herzfeld, op. cit., pl. LII, below.

Other Achaemenid seals are reproduced in, Schmidt, Persepolis II, pls. 15, P7733; 14, PT6130, no. 76; 18, PT5495;

104

A. Salmony, "SarmatianGold Collected by Peter the Great," op. cit. supra note 46.

16, PT65I.

105 Kul'tura, figs. 156-16o0.

and to6 The Near Eastern origin of the combat scene has been discussed by Rostovtsev, Iranians Greeks,p. 193, and T. TalThe Scythians, 161, among others. Rudenko, Kul'tura,p. 316ff., points out the analogy between certain bot-Rice, p. Pazyryk combat scenes and the combat scene from the relief at Persepolis. Orientale IV, Seals,pls. 31: g; 35: g; 4z: 1; G. Contenau, Manueld'Archeologie to7 For early examples, see Frankfort, Cylinder
Paris 1947, fig. 1150.

330

fromthe secondPazyryk the kurganshowso08 conventionalized and muscular pose stylization seenin Achaemenid and maybe compared with the Persiansealswhichdepictthe lion as art, the aggressor the ibexas the victimin almosteverycase.A silverhandle and ornament fromthe Oxustreasure bonerendering the hornsof the ibexas well as similar of showsthe sameherring and dot" body markings'o9. "bow of is themein Pazyryk. These reRepresentations the ibex with other cervids a recurring into threemajor of may presentations be divided groups:(x) the realistic representation animals in the round,reliefor appliqud; headsof animals in (z) represented the sametechniques; re(3) in of and To the firstgroup presentations animals distorted anatomically impossible positions. Theserealistic animals are belong the free-standing figuresof stags on a disc or pedestal,0o. and the finestin Pazyryk theirstanceis withoutparallel Achaemenid They are in art. among to unrelated the Assyro-Babylonian but maybe compared figures a muchearlier to of tradition, dateamongthe Ordosbronzes, smallstatuettes and fromCappadocia the Caucasusm" and from the early of thefirstmillennium C. Figures cervids antithetic B. of in from part positions Pazyrykll2, on the otherhand,haveparallels the Near East as earlyas the secondmillennium C., as in B. illustrated the sealsfrom Kirkuk",1. These posturescontinuein Assyrian of the ninth art by B.C."1 and frequentlyoccur on Achaemenian seals and jewelry",s. hammered The century in back-to-back front-to-front and and wooden cervidfiguresin similar copperfigures poses, on bridles fromPazyryk, certainly are related NearEastern to if poses typesin composition not in detailsI16. Antitheticanimals also appear in elsewhere Scythian particularly the sixth in art, B.C.~7 century The secondclassof cervidrepresentation, head namelythe use of the animal's as a decorative in Suchheadsareoftenmadein the roundandusedasfinials unit,appears repeatedly Pazyryk. I8, madein reliefon woodendiscs"v), cut out fromleather felt andusedas appliqud felt or or or on as decoration horsetrappings on fromLuristan2zo (Fig. 31). Zoomorphic as well asjewelry pins of the beginningof the firstmillennium C. show singleanimal B. whilein headsusedas finials, the ninthand eighthcenturies C., the Assyrians B. used the samemotif on furniture jewand It is only in Achaemenid thatisolatedanimal art headsoccuras independent decorative elryI2I. at in elements,as on a pendantof a necklace Chicago,andin bracteates the form of lion and
10o8Kul'tura,pl.
109

XXVII, 1, 2. Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, pI. V, Io. of Io10Kul'tura,pl. LXXIX, 2. "' Herzfeld, Iran in the AncientEast, p. I74, fig. 293. Hz2 Kul'tura,pls. IX, i; XLI, 4, figs. 72-73. 113 Herzfeld, op. cit., fig. 273. "I4 Ibid., fig. 370. "1s Kantor, "Achaemenid Jewelry," op. cit. supra note 95, pl. 9. 116 See supra note 112 117 Schefold, op. cit. supra note 6, p. 8, places the following in the sixth century B.C.: ibid., figs. 8-9, from the Melgunov barrow. Rostovtsev, IraniansandGreeks,pl. VI, from Kelermes; G. Borovka, Scthian Art, London 1928, pl. 36, A, is from the third century B. C. 118 Kul'tura,pls. XXXVI, I; XXXIII, 2, 3; XLVI, I; XLV, 3-4. 119 Ibid., pls. XLVIII, 1; CV, 3. 120 Herzfeld, op. cit., fig. 275; A. Godard, Le Trisorde Ziwiye,Haarlem 1950, fig. 43. Palace of Senacherib, in Holland, pl. 21; E. A. Budge, Assyrian Sculptures the British z12 A. Patterson, As.yrian Sculptures, Museum,Reignof Assur-Nasir-Pal, 88f-86o B.C., London 1914, pls. 29, 31-32.

331

griffin heads probably meant to be sewn on clothingI22. Helene Kantor suggests a Scythian origin for such heads in Achaemenid art'23 and points out that in certain cases the Pazyryk artists borrowed back in Persian form a motif typical of the steppes. In Achaemenidart ibex heads are often given a circularmane ending in small spirals or curls124in imitation of lion is manes. This mannerof representation also seen on seal impressionsfrom UrI2s where lions and other animalsare given similarmanes126. A horse trapping from the first Pazyrykkurgan shows an ibex head between the lower jaws of two lion griffins (Fig. 31). Around the head of the ibex is a crescentedged halo which is actuallya stylizationof the circularmane seen on the Achaemeniananimal heads. The Pazyrykhead is at once fantastic and familiar. The flowing tassels,the rich effectof contrastingcolors and the particular compositionaltheme, arefantastic, but individually the ibex and lion griffin heads have many parallelsin Achaemenid art. The palmettemotif behind the ear of the ibex is identicalto a detail from a sword sheathworn by a figure on a frieze at Persepolis (Fig. 32). Palmettes on the heads of animals and birds also appearin Scythianart from the Dnieper 27 to the KubanI28. A second ibex head from a circular horse trapping from PazyrykIz9 again shows the stylized mane around the head. Ibex heads made of wood in the round from severalPazyrykkurgans130may be comparedto Achaemenian types (Fig. 33) in the use of the "drop" motif below the eyes and ridges on the horns. To the third group of cervids in Pazyrykbelong the numerous figures representedin anaof distorted positions.One mannerof distortion is the representation the animal'shead tomically in front view with distortedprofilesof the body shown on either side of the head31'.Griaznovl32 believes this to be the resultof the inabilityof the artistto representthe animalin any other than a strictlyfrontal or profile perspective. In his desire to create movement, the Altai artist often combines these two types of perspectivein a single animalwhich may be shown with the head carved in the round, and the body displayedin profile on both sides of the head. The twisted hind quartersenhance the effect of movement. A gold plaque from Ziwiyel33from about the seventh centuryB. C.I34 shows two lions in profile joined together by a single head represented in front view. The same theme is encounteredin Greece during the Orientalizingperiod when sphinxes were representedin the same pose on Corinthianvases'3swhich probably owed the source of this inspirationto the easternartists Although Achaemenianartistsdid not utilize 136.
'22 Kantor, op. cit. supra note 95, p. 8. 23aIbid., pp. io-Ii.
124 125 126

News, July 1948, P. 59, fig. 7. Ibid., fig. 4; IllustratedLondon

Legrain, op. cit. supra note 42, pl. 42, no. 807.

This is noted by Helene Kantor, see supra note 123.

Borovka, Scythian Art, pls. 5, A, C, 8, C. Ibid., pls. 5, B, 8, A; Rostovtsev, Iranians and Greeks, pl. XIII, A-C.

'27 128

I29 Kul'tura,pl. CVII, 3. Ibid., pls. XXXVI, 2; XLV, 5; XLVI, i; LXX, 7. I31 Ibid., pl. XXV, 5, 6. 132 M. Griaznov, L'Art ancien de l'Atai, Leningrad 1958, pp. i8, 20. I33 Illustrated London News, April 1955, p. 699.
130

For the dating see, R.D.Barnett, "The Treasure of Ziwiye,", Iraq 18, 2, 1956, pp. 111-116. an early example of a pl. a35 Payne, Necrocorinthia, 16, no. 14, Necrocorinthia catalogue no. 39; Herzfeld, op. cit., gives similar pose from Siberia, fig. 280. 136 Contacts of Urartu with the Classical world and the transference of Near Eastern elements to the west through the de Lake Van region are discussed by the following: R.D.Barnett, "The Archaeology of Urartu," Compte-rendu la "Ancient Oriental Influences in Archaic Internationale Rencontre Assyriologique r9y2, Leiden 1954; R. D. Barnette, troisikme New York 1956; K. R. Maxwell-Hyslop, to Greece," The Aegean and the Near East, StudiesPresented Hetty Goldman,
'34

332

this motif, the prototype should be sought in the Near East',1 where as early as the second millennium B.C. such poses are seen among the numerous coalescing animals on the Kirkuk sealsI38. The discovery of Scythianbird heads at KarmirBlur indicatesthat Urartuwas already in contact with Scythiantribes at the end of the seventh century B. C.3, and may well be responsible for the transfer of some motifs, such as the coalescing animals, to the northern Scythiantribes as well as to the west. A second type of distortion among the Pazyryk animal representationsis the twisted hind quarters,best illustratedby the tattoos on the body of the chieftainfound in the second Pazyryk kurgan14o. The pose of these animals, also present elsewhere in Scythian art, is a carry-over from the combat scene where the impact of the attack causes the victim to throw out its hind quarters.Yet the artist seems to have forgotten the functional origin of this attitude and uses it decorativelyon a wooden figure of a crouching carnivorewhich is usually the attackinganimalI4I. The tattoo animalsare nowhere representedin combat but their twisted hind quarters increasethe effect of lively motion over the whole surface. There are no parallelsto the movement and vitality of design of these tattoos in Near Eastern The tattoo artist has even a winged lion but has assimilatedit into his own art.42. of fantasy filled with aniworld represented mals of the most hybrid sort with tails and antlersending in birds' heads'43. The dark and light patternson the torsos of many of the tattoo animalsappearto have a solely decorativefunction and are quite differentfrom the muscularstylizationsof Near Easternanimals. The feline appearsmore often than any other creaturein the art of Pazyryk. The panther, an animal indigenous to the Altai, is as frequently represented as the lion variations most familiarto Near Eastern art. The lion had been representedas the adversaryof man in Mesopotamianart since the third millenniumB. C.144 It is used repeatedlyin Susa, PersepolisIu and on Achaemenidjewelry46. A felt applique wall hanging from Pazyryk shows a series of lion heads with circularmanes ending in small spirals147. These heads, like the ibex heads (see above p. 332), have their counterpartin the sealimpressionsfrom Ur148, the glazed tiles of Susa,49,and on bracteatesfrom the Achaemenid periodlso.The liongriffiin,which differsfrom the lion by the addition of wings and horns, is used interchangeablywith the lion as an adversary of
"Urartian Bronzes in Etruscan Tombs," Iraq 18, 2, 1956, pp. 15o-167; M. Pallottino, "Urartu, Greece and Etruria," East and West 9, 1-2, March-June 1958. Profile sphinxes joined by a single head are present in Greek art also of the fourt century B. C. and later, see, David M. Robinson, Excavationsat Olynthos 1933, pl. V, 15. 137 Payne, Necrocorinthia, 28 ff. p. 138 Herzfeld, op. cit., fig. 278. 139 R.D.Barnett und W. Watson, "Russian Excavations in Armenia," Iraq 14, 2, 1952, fig. 4. 140 Kul'tura,figs. 175, 177, 185. For the relative position of the tattoos on the body, see figs. 80-83. '4' Ibid., pl. LXII, 2. '42 One possible example of a twisted hind quarter may be on an Achaemenid seal, see Schmidt, PersepolisII, pl. I8, P732I8. x43 Kul'tura, fig. 179. 144 Frankfort, Cylinder and in Seals, pls. 5, a; 0o, I 2, a, b, e; H. R.Hall, Babylonian Assyrian Sculptures the Brirish Museum, i; Paris 1928, pls. II, XIX; S. Harcourt-Smith, Babylonian Art, London 1928, pl. 63. 145 Herzfeld, op. cit., pl. LXXII; Dieulafoy, L'Acropolede Suse, fig. 153. 146 Kantor, op. cit. supra note 95, pl. V, a, b. '47 Kul'tura, pl. LXXXIX, 1. 148 Kantor, op. cit., fig. 7. '49 Hall, op. cit. supra note 144, pl. XIV, details of swords and furniture. Iso Kantor, op. cit., pl. VI, B.

333

Gilgamesh in Mesopotamianart. The winged lion and the lion griffin, which is often given birds' claws on its hind quartersin Achaemenid art, play rather important roles in Persian
jewelry and metal work (Fig. 34)151. The heraldic poses, body markings, wings and horns of the lion griffinson the two hammeredcopper plaquesfrom the second PazyrykkurganisZall recall

Achaemenianprototypes; only the horses' hooves on the forelegs betraylocal interpretationof an unfamiliarforeign tradition. Local interpretationis even more detectablein a leather lion The griffinmadepartlyin the round on a horse maskfrom the firstPazyrykkurgans53. technique and dot" motif on the hind quarters and overall effectare unique; only the horns and the "bow are reminiscentof the Near East. A row of crouching lion griffins made from wood and horn from Pazyryk(Fig. 35) shows the same pose, long ears, curving horns, open jaws and spade-liketails as the famous aigrette from the Oxus treasure (Fig. 36). The latter is made of gold and precious jewels, and shows Achaemenianinfluencein the muscularstylization,horns, and technicalskill of execution. This piece is also related in its general characteristicsto two pairs of lion griffins from western Siberiain the collection of Peter the Great at the Hermitagers. another animalwhich appearsseveral headbiting A motif rarein Achaemenidart is the animal times in Pazyryk.Animalsholding other animalpartsin their jaws are representedin the art of A Urartu'ss,in Etruscan arts56,and are known from Siberia'sT. hook or handle which was in 1956s8, now in a Pariscollection, shows a lion head biting the head of a acquiredin Teheran goose-like bird. The workmanship appears to be Achaemenian; though if the object was produced in Persia, it is the only example of such a motif which can be attributedto Persia proper.The idea is foreign also to Assyrianart, but it is not unlikely that the neighbouringLake Van region played an importantrole in the distributionof this curious theme's5. in of Severalrepresentations birds Pazyrykare relatedto Achaemenidart. Two antitheticand coalescentcocks with open wings and turned-back heads appearin leathercut-outs on a wooden sarcophagusfrom the first PazyrykkurganI60.Apart from the heraldicposes, there seems to be 16, nothing Near Easternabout them. A second examplefrom the same sarcophagus however, shows similarfigures representedmore realisticallywith the typical Near Eastern"bow" motif
xs5 Ibid., pls. III, IX, X, fig. 9. '52 Kul'tura, figs. 74, 72, a. and pl. Minns, Scythians Greeks,fig. 188; Talbot-Rice, The Scythians, 2. Examples of this motif from Pazyryk: Kul'tura,pls. LXXXIV, 4, LXXXIII, 1-2; from Urartu: C.F. Lehmann-Haupt, 155ss Armenieneinstundjetzt II, Berlin/Leipzig 1931, pp. 52. is6 Pericle Ducati, Storiadell'Arte EtruscaII, Florence 1927, pl. 5o; Herzfeld, op. cit., fig. 358. on the body of the animals; A. Salmony, Sinos57 Minns, "The Art of the Northern Nomads," op. cit., pl. 18, H, p. 72, Paris 1833, pls. XIII, 3, XVI, Io. in the C. T. Loo Collection, SiberianArt iss Pierre Amandry, "Orfevrerie Achemenides," Antike Kunst I, Olten/Switzerland 1958, pl. o0, 15-16. Other examples on pl. 10, show the same motif but are from uncertain proveniences. 159 Feline heads in front view are rare in Achaemenid and Assyrian art. The heads represented in low relief or engraved on wooden discs from Pazyryk, Kul'tura,pls. LXXX, I; LXVII, 3-6; LXVIII, 3-5, 7; XLVIII, 2, differ from the Frolov head, ibid., pl. LXXX, 4, in that the Pazyryk heads are invariably represented without the lower jaws. The animal's head representedin front view from the Oxus treasure, Dalton, The Treasureof theOxus, pl. XII, 40, shows the same extended mouth and muscular stylizations above the eyes and on the chin as the Frolov piece, and is possibly a derivation from Scythian art.
154

s53

Ibid., fig. 134.

I6o Kul'tura, fig. 17, b.

I61

Ibid., fig.

17, a.

334

on the upper wings. A procession of cocks madefrom leatherappliqu&6"2 clearlyshows both the "bow" and "dot" motifs on the wings. Goose heads in turned-backpositions are seen on the ends of a wooden bridle part'63 and as victims of a griffin head in the third Pazyrykkurganl64. Similarturned-backgoose heads are used as ornamentson the ends of Assyrian bows in the ninth and eighth centuriesB. C.16s and appearas vessel decorationsamong the recentlypublished objects from the treasuryof Persepolis 66. A silver bowl of supposedlyAchaemenianworkmanship, from the HermitageMuseum, shows similarantitheticgeese flankinga plamette motifI67. A stuffedleatherbird from Pazyrykwith its wings outstretchedand tail fanned out in the shape of a palmettex68 a counterpartin a silver pectoral from the Kuban which resembles the has former in all but the materialin which it is executedl69.This pose is reminiscentof the early Mesopotamianspread eagle170 which exists in both Assyrian and Persian artII where the bird is sometimes representedheadless with a sun disc on its chest172. A leather cut-out pattern on a saddle arch from Pazyryk repeats in an alternatelyinverted and upright position, what seems to be a stylized Near Eastern winged sun disc (Fig. 37). Single winged sun discs have religious connotations in the Near East where their use is solely symbolic7'. There is no indication, however, that the people of the Altai were at all familiar with Near Easternreligions and the decorative and repetitioususe of the design indicates that the Pazyrykimitator was unaware of the symbolism of the motif. in Notwithstandingthe importanceof the horse the life of the Pazyrykpeople, we find rather few representationsof it in their burials. Of interest among these are the representationsof antithetic horse heads'74.The earliest examples of such a composition are found among the Luristanbronzes's, in the Caucasusearlyin the first millenniumB. C. where they flanka female The latter is perhaps one of the last survivals of a figurel76, and on a capital at Pasargadae'77. northernmotif in Achaemenidart and is not repeatedthereafter,nor is it seen in Assyro-Babylonian art. A rug woven in the pile techniquefrom the first Pazyrykkurganshows a procession of horses (Fig. 38) alternatelyriddenand led by men wearing hoods of the bashkil or kyrbasia type. The tails of the horses are tied in knots, and their manesare clipped short leaving a bottleshapedtuft of hair on top of the head178.Actual remainsof horses at Pazyrykdo not show this treatmentof the top knot, but we find this detail repeatedlyused on horses from the Persepolis
162 x63 x64 16s

Ibid., fig. 71.

166
167

Ibid., pl. XLIX, 1. Ibid., pl. C, I. E.F. Weidner, Die Reliefsderassyrischen K'nige,Berlin 1939, figs. 39. A.U.Pope, Survey PersianArt, Oxford of Kul'tura,pl. XXXIII, 4.
Schmidt, Persepolis II, pls. 53; I, 2, 5; 82, 2-3.
1930, I,

68

fig. 86.

169 Minns, Scythians and Greeks, fig. ro5.

170 171

For early Near Eastern spread-eagle motif see, Frankfort, Cylinder Seals, pls. XI, g, XXIII, i. Survey PersianArt, op. cit., IV, pl. I16,h; "Exhibition of Iranian Art," IstitutoItalianoper il MedioedEstremoOriente, of
June-August 1957, pl. 28, 231.

172 173

174
175 176 177 178

Frankfort, Cylinder Seals, pl. XXXVII, c, I, n. E.F.Schmidt, Persepolis pls. 4: 5-6, 5: 8, 11-13, 6: 18, 7: 20-23, 8: 24, 26. II, Kul'tura,pls. XLVIII, i, LIII, 1, CV, 2-3. Herzfeld, op. cit., fig. 295, a. Ibid., fig. 295, d. Ibid., p. 240. For a color reproduction see, Kul'tura,pl. CXVI, 2.

335

and reliefs"79 on the handlesof a silver amphora,reputedlyfrom Iran 80. No exact counterpartof this knot appearsamong Assyrian clipped manes'81.The riders depicted on the Pazyryk rug wear the flat-topped kyrbasia, the usual head gear of the Iranians, as demonstratedby the reliefsfrom Nakhsh-e Rustamand Persepolis.This differsfrom the type worn by the Armenians as and Cappadocians well as from the pointed type worn by the Sakan and Scythianpeople. of The concious representation isocephalyon the Pazyrykrug is anotherfactor which connects it to the Persepolis reliefs. In contrastto the bridles found in actualPazyrykhorse burials,the horses shown on the rug have extremely simple bridles, resembling those on the Persepolis reliefs which are decoratedwith simple rosettes and crescent-shaped motifs at the juncture of the psalion and bit. Pazyryk bridles are richly decorated with plant and animal motifs made of leather or of wood which is sometimes coated with gold leaf, producing a rich and deceptively heavy apcan pearance.Certainof these motifs such as the rosette be clearlytracedto Near EasternprotoSingle rosettes are used as decoration on a few bridle representationsfrom Assyrian types187. and Achaemenidartwhere they areused sparingly,unlike the repetitiousdisplayon the Pazyryk bridles183. Similar rosettes are used as decoration on clothing, furniture, jewelry and in the architectureof the Assyro-Babylonianand Achaemenid periods 84. Related to these are the simple rosettes which decorate the two felt rugs and the body of the fantastic sphinx on the wall hanging from the fifth Pazyrykkurganl85. An Assyrian lotus-palmette design is possibly the prototype for the central theme of the Pazyryk rug discussed earlier86. The Achaemenianlotus-palmetteused in a chain design on the glazed tiles of Susais also similarl87. The latter, however, is more directly relatedto a chain of lotus-palmetteson the bordersof variousfragmentsof felt appliquefrom the second Pazyryk kurganl88 (Fig. 39). Superimposedlotuses topped with palmettes representedin a continuous Achaemenianand appear on the major facade reliefs of Persepolis chain are characteristically A and on the staircaseat Susa'89. simple palmetterepresentedon a woman's head gear from the second Pazyryk kurganl9ois comparableto the palmettes decorating the tops of the chain patternson the staircaseat Susa'9. A geometric pattern on a woven rug from the fifth Pazyryk kurgan shows a series of squareswhich contain rectangularfigures of alternatingsize topped by a serratedpattern (Fig. 40). An identical patternis depicted on the robes of the famous archerson the glazed tiles of
'79 Herzfeld, op. cit., pls. LXXVII-LXXIV.
180

181 Hall, op.cit. supranote 144, pls. XVIII, XXVI, XXIX.

182

Pierre Amandry, "Toreutique Achemenide," Antike Kunst2, 1959, pl. 22, I.

183

Ibid., pl. XVIII. Kul'tura,pls. XLIX, 3, L, 5, fig. 98. s84 Hall, op. cit., pls. IX, 3, on clothing; XVIII, on horse trapping; LVI, on pavement; LVII; CXII, jewelry; Herzfeld, op. cit., p. 68. 18s Kul'tura,pls. LXIX, 2; XC, 1; CIII. 186 Payne, Necrocorinthia, fig. 54. For a complete reproduction of the Pazyryk rug, see, Mongait, op. cit. supra note 89. 187 Dieulafoy, L'Acropole de Suse, fig. 43; Assyrian example, Perrot-Chipiez, A History of Art in Chaldiaand Assyria, fig. 131. 188 See also Kul'tura,pl. LXXXIX, 2. 1s9 Dieulafoy, op. cit., fig. 173. 190o Kul'tura,pl. XCI, 3. 9x' Dieulafoy, op. cit., fig. 18o.

336

Severalpatterns on the robes of the archersshow openings on the rectangularfigures SusaI92. in the shapesof doors and windows, which led Dieulafoy to regardthem as a stylized representation of the citadelof Susa'93.A less stylizedversion of this citadel motifis perhapsthe miniature bronze model city from Toprak which resemblesthe model cities offeredas tribute to Kale~9* the Assyrian kings'95. If not a direct import, the Pazyryk motif must be a faithful copy of an Achaemenidtextile patternvery similarto that representedon the robes of the archersat Susa. The felt applique wall hanging representinga female figure with a flowering branch, approachedby a man on horseback,is one of the better known objectsfrom Pazyrykdiscussed by A scene between a mythical Rudenko196. restorationof the border scene shows afantasticcombat bird and a feline-bodied,human-headedcreaturewith wings and antlers (Fig. 41)197. The bird as such, has no parallelsin the Near East, yet the tip of its tail is decoratedwith the typically Near Easternrosette which is repeatedon the body of its adversary.The second monster is of special interest as an example of the fusion of the Near Eastern tradition with the decorative and animatedart of Pazyryk. The abstractand colorful patterns on its tail, wings and antlers are indigenous features.The ends of the decorativeintertwiningpatternsoften resemblebirds' and characteristicof Scythian art. The heads, a feature encountered on the tattoo animalss98, feline-bodied,human-headedmonsteritself, however, is a Near Easternconception going back to the third millennium B. C. in Mesopotamia',9. In the first millennium B.C., Assyrian seals show sphinxes in combat with various adversariesor overpowered by Gilgamesh oo.These figures have only the general idea of the sphinx in common with the Pazyryk monster. The effectof movement createdby the half turned body of the latterhas no parallelsin Assyrianart, while the claw-like paws are also unusual.The long ears are characteristic the Mesopotamian of lamassuor sphinx, but the black moustacheis not, nor is the Assyrianbare-headed spbinx ever shown with horns; even those wearing horned mitres are never given antlers. Thereis nothing similarto this monsterin the art of Persia,and the distantAssyrianparallels must therefore have reachedPazyrykthrough another intermediary.A hint at the location of this intermediarylies in the composition which is the central theme of the wall hanging. The seated figure with a serratedcrown holding a flowering branchand approachedby a rider may well representthe enthroned goddess Anahita receiving a visitor on horseback.This theme is and misobviously a copy of a foreign prototype as it contains numerous misunderstandings interpretationswhich show the unfamiliarityof the artist with the subject matterzo1.The inversion of the ear of the goddess, the anatomicallyimpossible position of her arms, and the of physiognomy of the rider all point to a foreign source.202 Representations cult scenes from
192Ibid.,

o93Dieulafoy, L'Acropolede Suse, p. 217. R.D. Barnett, "Excavations of the British Museum at Toprak Kale Near Van," Iraq XII, I, 1950, pl. I. '95 Ibid.,p. 5, fig. 3. W96 Kul'tura,pl. XCV. 197 V. Shilov, Soobscheniia gosudarstvennogo ErmitaghaIX, Leningrad 1956, p. 41. 198 Kul'tura,figs. 181-184. '99 G. Contenau, Les Antiquitds Orientales,Sumer, Babylonie,Elam, Mus6e du Louvre, p1s. 32-33; Contenau, Manuel Orientale Paris 1947, p. 2184, fig. 1218. IV, d'Archdologie 200 W.Schwenzner, op. cit. supra note 43, pp. 64: 308; 63: 302, 305-307; I2: 48; 11: 47; 7I: 35. 201 0. Maenchen-Helfen, "CrenelatedMane and Scabbard Slide," CentralAsiatic JournalII, I957, p. I26. 202 Kul'tura,p. 322.
'94

fig. I4; Mimoiresde la Mission Archologiqueen Iran, ArchiologieSusienne XXX, Presses Universitaires de France 1947, fig. 26: 1-5.

337

the Oxus treasureassociatedwith the goddess show strong Achaemenianinfluenceswhich are absentin this piece. The hypothesis may be advancedthat the Pazyrykpatternoriginatesin an areawhich was influencedby Assyrianart and familiarwith the cult of Anahita.Archaeological discoveries in the Caucasusand Kurdistan have confirmed the references made in Assyrian annalsto culturesin those areaswhich were in contact with Assyriafrom the thirteenthcentury B. C.203 Strong Assyrian influence is apparent in the art of Urartu especially in the eighth centuryB. C.204 and in the objects from Ziwiye in the ancientMannaidistrict.The gold pectoral from Ziwiye, dated to about the seventh century B. C.zos, is still strongly Assyrian in spite of in the innumerablemisunderstandings the figures.o6.Furthermore,Anahitawas worshippedin Armenia as well as in the Oxus region, and a district on the upper Euphrateswas actually named after the goddesszo7. A comparison between the Pazyryk fantastic sphinx (Fig. 41) and an Assyrian type halfin humanwinged bull from the Ziwiye pectoral (Fig. 42) significantlyhighlights the differences approach to the same motif. The Ziwiye pectoral as representativeof Near Eastern art demonstratesthe traditionalfigure in a stiff and formal pose. The tail and wings are symbolic and aim at the communicationof the idea behind the motif. The Pazyrykfigure, on the other hand, takes over certainfeaturesof the conventionaltheme which are reinterpreted the local artist, by who delights in the possibilities for creating decorative patterns offered by the motifs of the pattern of antlerswhich reinwings and tail. He changes the simple horn into a semi-abstract forces the pattern of the tail on the lower part of the composition, and gives a harmoniously decorativesurfaceto the picture. The curving line of the torso and the turn of the body on its axis give an effect of movement and depth which offsets the purely one dimensional surface patterns. The result is a totally pleasing composition, if not for its symbolic and narrative quality, yet for the decorative effects of patternsand colors. It is to be expected that classicaland Near Eastern influencesin the art of Pazyryk are in to most cases of an indirect sort. It is, however, remarkable find examplessuch as the lion procession on the Pazyrykfabric which so faithfully follow prototypes from distant Achaemenid Persiazo0. In most cases, one may suppose, Near Eastern motifs reached the Altai through AchaemenidBactria,but there is some indication that another medium existed through which motifs of non-Achaemeniancharacterwere transferredto Pazyryk. The discovery of the Scyis thian type of bird heads at Karmir Blurzo9 important evidence of contact between the CauThere is perhapsa laterindicationof such contact in objects from casus and the northerntribes. Pazyryksuch as the fantasticcombat scene and enthronedfigure on the felt wall hanging from
the fifth

which have parallelsin the Lake Van region.

203 D.D.Luckenbill, AncientRecords Assyria andBabylonia, Chicago 1926, I, p. 39; R.D.Barnett, op. cit. supra notes 134, of 204 B.B.Piotrovskii, Karmir Blur, Arkheologicheskie raskopki v Armenii, Erevan 205 For the chronology see, Barnett, op. cit. supra note 134. 206 de Godard, Le Trdsor Ziwiye,p. 23. 207 Dalton, The Treasure the Oxus, p. 28. of
208

kurganz?o,

certain animals in distorted positionszll,

and animals biting other animals

136, 139, 194.

1950-1955,

I, figs. 40-41,

II, fig. 19-20o.

Kul'tura, pl. CXVII, I. 2zo0Barnett-Watson, "Russian Excavations in Armenia," op. cit. supra note 139, fig. 4. 210o Kul'tura,pl. XCV.
211

Ibid., pl. XXV, 5-6.

338

Several significant conclusions follow from the foregoing discussion. Numerous floral motifs in Pazyrykare relatedto south Russianprototypes derived from Greek art, where floral patterns comprise the main theme of border decorations. That one group of Pazyryk bird griffinswith fish-finmanesis derivedfrom Greecethrough south Russiais of specialimportance for chronological reasons.It is mainly on the strength of Achaemenianelements that Rudenko dates the Pazyrykkurgansprincipallyfrom the late fifth centuryB. C.21z The particular problem of the Pazyryk griffin in its relationshipto south Russian and Greek examples of the fourth centuryB. C. was consideredby Rudenko in his earlierbook. There, however, he suggested an Assyrian prototype, perhaps through the medium of Urartu, rather than Classicalsources213. The possibility of Urartuas an importantmedium for the transmissionof Near Eastern motifs to the Altai cannot be denied, but this hypothesisremainsunverifiedby archaeological evidence. Excavations in the Van region have not yielded any griffins similar to those at Pazyryk, and Assyrian examples do not show the particularfish-fin feature of the mane. This featureis deof veloped on Greek coins of the fifth centuryB. C. and is an establishedcharacteristic Classical and south Russian griffins of the fourth century B. C. and later. A broken Chinesemirrorfound in the sixth Pazyryk correspondsin its decoration kurganz*4 and diameterto a group of Chinesemirrorswith "T" ornamentswhich Karlgrenassigns to the fourth centuryB. C.21s,on general stylistic grounds. This possible correlationtogether with the Classicaland south Russian analogies to the Pazyrykgriffin with the fish-fin type mane which occurs in the earliest kurgansnumbers i and 2, indicates the beginning of the fourth century B. C. as the terminus a quo for all the Pazyryk burials, the largest of which were constructed within a range of forty-eight years216. The prevalence of Achaemenian influences and the existence of certain imports from Persia indicate on the other hand, that the Pazyryk burials should not be dated after the third quarterof the fourth century B. C., when the conflicts of Alexander with CentralAsiatic tribes terminatedthe trade between the Oxus region and the north east217.

212 213

214

21s

Ibid., pp. 342-361. Ibid., pp. 346-348. For some of the arguments against Rudenko's dating see, Kiselev, op. cit. supra note 79, PP. 357361; illustrated in Kul'tura,pls. XXIX, 3; XXVI, I; XX, I. Kul'tura, fig. 85. B. Karlgren, "Huai and Han," BMFEA 13, 1941, pl. 16, C45. The diametersof the Chinese mirrors in the C45 group
range from 12.5 to 9.2 cm. Group C46, very similar to the former, shows a range of ii to I1.4 cm. The Pazyryk mirror has a diameter of I I.5 cm. See supra note i.

216 217

Kiselev, op. cit. supra note 79, PP. 357-361.

339